Taboo Love
by XxMysticMariexX
Summary: She knew it was forbidden, that it was taboo; he was older then her - of legal age - and she, only seventeen. She loved him, of that she was sure, and she didn't care the consequences... she was going to be with him
1. Introduction

_**This is just an introduction to the story; more will be in the next chapter**_

Author Note: I really have no idea where this one came from. I was sitting in social studies class and our teacher had been talking about the youth criminal justice act and all of a sudden the idea for this story popped into my head. I'm not sure who the main character is yet, haven't really developed her but the boy is based off a good friend of mine; commonly know of FF as Lovely Spell. In the story the boy is Naruto, because as Lovely pointed out to me one day both he and Naruto are short, blonde and cute.  
So this story is dedicated to you Lovely Spell, hope you like it.

Summary: She knew it was forbidden, that it was taboo; he was older then her - of legal age - and she, only seventeen. She loved him, of that she was sure, and she didn't care the consequences... **she was going to be with him**.

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**Introduction**

She knew it was forbidden, that it was taboo; he was older then her - of legal age - and she, only seventeen. He lived in a village at war with hers and yet she wanted to be with him…she loved him – or at least she was sure she loved him.

So she kept her feelings for him to herself. She didn't even tell her most trusted and best friend.


	2. Creation

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Kishimoto does. But if I ever do own it trust me when I tell you it definitely wouldn't have the rating it currently does. I will make sure that Kakashi walks around shirt-less all the time and if I'm in a good mood, mask-less every once in a while. There will be an entire episode dedicated to Kakashi and Iruka and their hidden love.

Authors Note: This is the first chapter of the story I hope you enjoy it oh and yes I know that in reality Suna and Konoha are allies at this point but for the stories purposes they aren't, just bare with me on this.

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**Creation**

The first time she met him she was twelve at the time - a newly turned genin - and he was fifteen - a chunin. He was strutting through her village, shouting a name repetitively.

"SASUKE!" he bellowed, his voice almost as loud as his orange and black outfit and blinding blonde hair.

She wasn't quite sure why, but she felt she needed to help him, yet she was nervous to approach him. It was obvious she wasn't from his village - the insignia on her headband made that clear - but there was something about the boy that captivated her. Thinking quickly, she took her headband off and stuffed it into her pocket, if he didn't know she was a kunoichi from this village he might not be as reluctant to talk to her, then shyly walked over to the rambunctious teen.

"I can help you find your friend if you like," she offered.

He turned toward her in shock, as if surprised someone was paying attention to him.

"Uh..." he stated dumbfounded.

Seeing him act like this gave her courage, for reasons unknown to her. She smiled sweetly and held out a hand.

"Don't worry, I won't bite. You lost your teammate; I can help you find him. I'm not very good with directions, but I'm sure I know my way around here better then you do." She, of course, was lying. She probably knew the village better then the Kazakage and probably everyone else in the village as well. When travelers came to Suna, she was the one hired to show them around.

"Um...thanks...I think," he replied.

She took hold of his hand and led him toward a large building, up a flight of stairs (quite quickly to his surprise) and onto the roof. Pulling on his hand she led him to the edge of the building, where you could see the entire village from.

"So what does your friend look like?" she asked turning to the blonde.

"He's got dark blue hair that snicker looks like a chicken's ass; and he's dress in a blue t-shirt; white shorts, with white bandages on his legs; and wraps on his lower arms. From here we should be able to see him if he's on the streets," the boy explained.

"Ok, I'll go over to the other side, you look from here, I'll look from there."

They were only up there for about three minutes when there was a shout from down below. She walked over to the other side, back beside the blonde, and saw the boy he had described standing there staring at the two of them.

"Naruto, get down here! Are you trying to get us caught! It's bad enough you're wearing that stupid orange jacket and pants, but walking around with your headband on like that is just stupid! And who's she!" Sasuke, she remembered his name, shouted pointing at her.

"Teme! It's not my fault you ran off on me! I was trying to find you! This is... who are you?" he asked turning to her.

"My name is Mika," she told him.

"Her name is Mika, she was helping me find you!" he yelled to Sasuke.

"Well get your ass down here! You're going to ruin the entire mi...just get down here and let's go! Sakura said she found something interesting, she thinks we should go check it out!"

"Coming!"

Naruto jumped down from the roof and landed beside his "friend", only to be smacked on the head by said friend.

"Ow! Teme what was that for!" Naruto shouted, glaring at Sasuke.

"For being an idiot! The point of this mission is to gather information without sticking out or being noticed by the nin of Suna. With you jumping down from buildings; wearing the hideous orange jump suit, and your headband; and yelling at me at the top of you lungs, you're doing a horrible job at keeping this mission discreet." Sasuke smacked Naruto in the head again.

"Well if you hadn't run off I wouldn't have been yelling! There's nothing wrong with my outfit thank you very much! And if it bothers you so much I'll put my headband in my pocket."

"Thank you! And you should know that I didn't run off, I was trying to find out some information...without you being there to screw things up," Sasuke pointed out.

Naruto glared at him, which caused Sasuke to glare right back.

"Umm...excuse me; I hope I'm not interrupting anything. It's just, I was wondering if you'd need anymore help," Mika interrupted.

The two boys stopped glaring at each other and turned to look at Mika. She blushed and glanced down at her feet.

"Who are you, again?" Sasuke asked.

"My name's Mika, I was helping your friend Naruto find you."

"Right, well...thanks but we should be fine now." Sasuke walked off without saying anything else, leaving Naruto to run after him.

"Thanks Mika, maybe I'll see you around again some time!" Naruto shouted over his shoulder as he chased after his teammate.

Well that's chapter one, I hope you enjoyed it.  
I'll get chapter two up as soon as I'm finished writing it.

Please be nice this one probably won't be betaed, but if I can find someone who's willing to beta for me then I'll send them off and have them fixed up. So if there's spelling mistakes in them I apologize.

You know the drill review please.


	3. Accidents Happen

Disclaimer: as far as I know I still don't own Naruto...but I'm trying! Until then, I hope you enjoy my fantasy as much as I do lol :P

A.N. Each chapter will be a meeting between Mika and Naruto, and this one I need a little help. Mika has a nameless brother, so please if you have suggestions let me know! Oh and there are a few hints to Karuka/Ikashi (KakashixIruka/IrukaxKakashi for those who don't know what I meant)

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**Accidents Happen**

The second time they met - it was about three months after her first run in with him - her team had been assigned to infiltrate Konohagakuru and obtain information about the Hokage and a ninja boy who apparently was the host of the nine-tailed fox demon, Kyubi. She had split up from the rest of her team to wander around the village. She was passing by a ramen stand when a loud voice caught her attention.

"But Iruka-sensei, I want one more bowl!"

"Forget it Naruto! You've already had six bowls and, until just now, failed to tell me you were broke! I'm not paying for eight bowls of ramen!" shouted a second voice that sounded very angry.

"Please Iruka-sensei, just one more!" Naruto pleaded.

"No! Now get down to the training fields before you're late!"

"Psht, like me being late will make a difference. Kakashi-sensei's always two hours late, so what should it matter if I'm a few minutes?"

Naruto and his companion - the man named Iruka - walked out of the stand, and Mika found herself wondering why he - Iruka - was blushing. Both Konoha ninja must have been distracted, because next thing Mika knew, Naruto had walked right into her and both of them fell to the ground.

"Watch where you're walking!" Naruto snapped

"You ran into me! I think you should be watching where you're walking!" she snapped back.

Naruto untangled himself from her and stood up.

"Hey, it's you again, what are you doing here?" he exclaimed, when he recognized her.

"Naruto, don't be so rude. You knocked her down, so help her to her feet," Naruto's friend scolded.

"Huh?"

The older man sighed and offered a hand to Mika. She blushed, but took his hand none the less. Once on her feet she smiled and thanked him.

"Nah, don't mention it. Someone has to be courteous when Naruto's involved. Are you alright, he didn't break anything, did he?" Iruka asked.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking."

"Hey, stop ignoring me! I asked you a question!" Naruto interrupted.

"Sorry, Naruto. I'm here because I'm visiting a cousin," Mika explain. She was able to lie so quickly because she had made up an excuse, for being in Konoha, before she and her team had arrived.

"Wait, you know her, Naruto?" the eldest inquired.

"'Course I do. I met her in Suna. She helped me find Sasuke. Remember when we had that mission? Well. Sasuke-teme ran off and I couldn't find him. So...what was your name again?" Naruto asked turning to look at her.

"Mika."

"Right, so Mika helped me find Sasuke," he finished turning back to Iruka.

"Well that was nice of her," the older man commented.

"Ne, ne, Iruka-sensei, do you think Kakashi-sensei would mind if I invited Mika-chan to training? She could come and watch!" Naruto exclaimed.

"I'll ask him, but I doubt he'll be paying much attention to what I'm saying. He'll probably have other things on his mind."

"Huh?" Naruto asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Um... I mean...never mind...I uh gotta go, I'll talk to you later. Nice meeting you Mika," Iruka babbled, blushing redder then a tomato (AN: or as I like to say, "Redder then Gaara's hair!") Iruka wandered off without letting either Naruto or Mika reply.

"Riiight...anyway, would you like to come to practice with me? You can meet my other teammates, Sakura and Kakashi-sensei. Sensei'll be late, as he always is, but Sakura's really nice," Naruto asked; turning to Mika after Iruka had disappeared.

"Uh...sure, but I can't stay too long, my te...cousin might get worried," Mika accepted, wondering how well the loudmouthed blond could spar.

"Great, follow me!" he yelled, grabbing her hand, and leading her down the road to, she assumed, the training grounds.

When they arrived, Mika saw Sasuke sitting under a tree relaxing and a girl with bubblegum-pink hair sitting beside him. She was staring at him like he was some god to worship.

"Sasuke-teme, you lazy baka, get up!" Naruto shouted, startling - Mika assumed - Sakura.

"Naruto, shut up, you'll wake him up!" Sakura shouted.

"And you shouting in my ear won't?" growled Sasuke.

"Who's with you, Naruto? I could sense her chakra since you two were about a block away," he added.

"Oh, this is Mika-chan, don't you remember her? She helped me find you when we were in Suna."

"And why is there a sand village ninja in Konoha?" Sasuke demanded.

"I-I'm not a ninja, I-I'm just here visiting m-m-my cousin," she stammered, trying to sound nervous.

This boy was smart and if she wasn't careful she might be found out, which would jeopardize her team's mission, and she didn't want to do that. No matter what Konoha did to her, her punishment, once home, would be far worse.

"Do you think Kakashi-sensei will mind if she stays to watch us train? I know its just genjutsu we're working on, so he shouldn't mind too much, should he?" Naruto asked his teammates.

"Not at all Naruto, if your friend wants to stay and watch let her," came a voice from behind he and Mika.

They both jumped in shock and spun around to see a man with grey hair; a mask on his lower face and his headband covering his left eye, standing directly behind them. Mika squeaked and fell backwards onto her butt.

"Kakashi-sensei! What are you doing here so early?" Naruto and Sakura shouted in unison.

"Eh, I decided to skip the path of life today," the masked man replied with a shrug, "I'll go later I guess, there's nothing more enjoyable then a late night on the path of life."

"Tch, pervert," Mika heard Sasuke mumble.

"What was that Sasuke?" his sensei asked.

"I said you're a pervert! What makes you think I we want to hear about your sex life?"

"Who said I was talking about sex?"

"Oh come on, it's pretty obvious you're talking about it. I mean you'd have to be Naruto not to realize it."

"Yeah what he said..." Naruto replied, "...wait...Sasuke you teme! Did you just call me slow?!"

"Uh yeah, and you just proved my point, dobe."

"Don't call me dobe, teme!"

"I'll stop calling you dobe when you stop calling me teme!"

"Boys enough! Stop fighting and let's train. Mia, you can go sit over there and watch if you like," Kakashi instructed, pointing to a large black stone, that Mika had an odd  
feeling was a cenotaph.

She nodded her head, got up off the ground and walked over to the stone. She nodded her head slightly, when she was close enough to see there were names written on the black stone. After she sat down something occurred to her.

"How did he know my name?" she asked herself out loud.

"I knew you brother, you look very much like him," a voice said from behind her again. She squeaked again and fell to the ground...again.

"How did...when...you knew my brother?"

"Yes Hitari was a very nice man. He was constantly talking about his sweet little sister Mika, and how she wanted to be a 'ninda like her big bwoder.'"

"So you know who...or should I say what I am?" she asked quietly, ashamed she had been found out and had ruined the mission.

"Yes I know. But if you're anything like your brother, who I'm sure you are; I'm not worried about you. However your teammates..." he cut himself short when there was a shout from Naruto.

"Kakashi-sensei, Mika-chan, look out!"

Mika and Kakashi looked up to see a surge of chakra heading toward them. Kakashi was out of the way in seconds, but Mika wasn't quick enough and was hit head on by the energy. Her vision got fuzzy and she started to feel dizzy. She could just make out the others running toward her before everything went black and she passed out.

When she woke up, she was in a gown lying in a hospital bed; Kakashi sitting in a chair beside her bed.

"Ah you're finally awake. We were worried Naruto had sent you into or coma, or worse killed you," Kakashi said looking up from and orange book in his hand.

"H-how..." she rasped out, her throat extremely sore.

"You've been out for about three weeks," he told her.

She shot up and stared at him wide eyed.

"Th-th-three..."

"Yes, but don't strain yourself. The chakra, Naruto hit you with, super charged your body. It couldn't handle all the extra chakra and shut down."

Taking deep breaths, she sat back in the bed and gestured to Kakashi 'pen and paper.'

"I'll be right back then."

He got up and walked out of the room. Instead of Kakashi walking back through the door, however, it was a blond, with a very large bust, who did.

"So you're Mika, the genin kunoichi from Suna?" the women asked.

"..." Mika remained silent, and not only because it hurt to talk.

"My name is Lady Tsunade; I'm the med-nin who took care of you. I'm also the current Hokage, and I was informed that your team - who left two weeks ago without you - was found out. We knew you were here as soon as you crossed the border into the Fire Country. Kakashi has explained to me who you are. I knew your brother as well; he has a very kind heart. When Konoha and Suna were still allies, I had the pleasure of working with Hitari for a while. You were all he could talk about," the women explained.

Mika blushed and looked down at her hands. She had been found out and when she returned home she'd be punished severely.

"Pl..."

"No, no talking for now. You need to rest and heal," Tsunade interrupted. Mika nodded her head as Kakashi came back in holding a pad of paper and a pen in his hand. He handed them to her then turned to Tsunade.

"Now tat she's awake, I'll be leaving. Naruto will want to know she's alright. Thank you for your kindness Tsunade-sama. Hitari would have thanked you for being so merciful to his sister. After all she was all he had left."

Mika quickly scribbled something on the paper and handed it to Kakashi.

_'Thank you. My brother thanks you.'_

"You're welcome Mika, anything for the family of a good friend," he replied. He handed the notepad back then left.

"I'm shocked, a stranger, from a village we're at war with, got Kakashi Hatake to stay in a hospital for three weeks. The only other person able to do that is Umino, and that's only because of the fact that Iruka bribes Kakashi into staying," Tsunade commented.

Mika's eyes widened for a fraction of a second and then she wrote on the paper and showed it to Tsunade.

_'What did you say his name was?'_

"Kakashi Hatake."

_'The famous Copy-nin?'_ Mika scribbled down.

"Yep that's him."

_'But he seems so kind. I heard that he was a cruel ruthless killer.'_

"Nah, not Kakashi. Even when he has to kill, he's neither cruel nor ruthless. Kakashi is a good man, a little unorthodox, but a good man."

_'I'm glad it was he, and not someone else, who found me then.'_

"I'm sure most others would have been as kind. Hitari was well known in Konoha. He was a skillful med-nin and helped train many of our own. Now, you need to rest, I'll come back to check on you in a little while."

Tsunade left, Mika set her pen and paper on the table beside her bed and got comfortable so she could sleep.

So there's chapter 2 hope you enjoyed. please review!  
I'll post up chapter 3 as soon as I'm finished.

I apologize if there are spelling mistakes, this hasn't been beta'd yet, so there probably are a few. I'll send this off to my lovely Lovely Spell as soon as I can get a hold of him.


	4. Apologies

Summary: This is Mika and Naruto's third meeting. It happens three weeks after their second, when Mika wakes up in the hospital. She had been hit with a bunch of chakra from Naruto and passes out. When she wakes up she talks to Kakashi and Tsunade. Tsunade instructs Mika to rest some more and just as she's about to fall asleep Naruto comes running into the room.

Disclaimer: Still don't own Naruto, not matter how much I want to T.T

* * *

**Apologies**

The third time she saw him, was actually not long after the second. After being told by Tsunade to rest, Mika had just started to drift off when Naruto came bursting into the room.

"Mika-chan! You're finally awake! Thank God you are! I'm so sorry; I thought I had killed you!" Naruto shouted running over to her bed and enveloping her in a hug.

"Nar...air!" Mika wheezed out.

Naruto immediately let go and started apologizing again. Mika reached over and grabbed the pen and paper, then wrote something and handed it to Naruto, who was still saying sorry.

"It's ok Naruto, you don't have to apologize, it not you fault," he read out loud, "but it is my fault!" he retorted.

She just shook her head and smiled at him. Mika reached for the paper and Naruto handed it to her. She wrote something else and handed it back.

_'It's not your fault; you don't have to take the blame. If I had been paying attention, I could have easily dodged out of the way.'_

Naruto looked at her confused and passed her the paper so she could explain. But, instead of explaining, Mika just wrote down five simple words.

_'I promise I'll explain later.'_

"Ok, I'll let you get some sleep. Promise me you'll get someone to tell me when you wake up again?" he asked.

She nodded her head, and set her things beside her again. Naruto left and Mika, now very tired, fell asleep almost instantly.


	5. Promise Kept

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, no matter how much I'd love to, but I do own my OC Mika, and her brother Hitari.

* * *

**Promise Kept**

Mika woke the next morning feeling much better but still very drained. She was awakes for about ten minutes when a kind looking women with dark blue, almost black, hair walked in and, upon seeing that Mika was awake; smiled at her.

"Good morning Mika, my name is Shizune; I'm Lady Tsunade's assistant. I'm just here to check up on you and see how you're doing," the women explained.

"I'm feeling much better now, thank you," Mika replied, surprised at how well her voice had come back. It still kind of hurt to talk and she couldn't talk very loud, but she could still say more then she could yesterday.

"Ah; good. I see your voice is back too. If things go well, you should be able to leave this afternoon at the earliest or tomorrow morning at the latest."

"Does this mean I'll have to go back home?" Mika asked nervously, wanting to put off going home as long as she could.

"No, we want you to stay here for at least another two weeks to make sure everything is ok," Shizune explained noticing Mika's reluctance.

"Ok, thank you."

"Mika, may I ask you something?"

She nodded her head and sat up more in her bed, glad it didn't hurt as much as it had the day before.

"You seem like you don't want to go back to Suna, why is that?"

"I caused my team to fail our mission. When I get back, I'll be punished severely. I'm afraid to go back. I've been punished before and I wasn't able to move for a month and a half... and that was just a light punishment," Mika explained with a shudder, which shot pain throughout her entire body.

"Oh, you poor dear," Shizune exclaimed.

After having her check up and conversing with Tsunade's assistant, Mika remembered what she had said to Naruto yesterday.

"Shizune, could you do me a favour?"

"Sure," she replied.

"If you see Naruto, could you let him know I'm awake?"

"No problem. I'll let him know right after I've checked in with Lady Tsunade," she agreed sweetly.

"Thank you."

Shizune nodded her head and walked to the door adding, "Breakfast should be here in about five minutes."

"Oh good, I'm starving."

"I'll talk to Lady Tsunade, maybe you won't have to return to Suna, and you'll be allowed to remain here."

"Do you really mean that Shizune?" Mika asked excited.

"Of course. Now I have to go, I'll come back and let you know when you can check out."

And so, after Mika had breakfast, she sat alone in her room with nothing to do until Kakashi and Iruka came to visit at about eleven.

"How are you feeling today, Mika?" Kakashi asked, taking a seat on the edge of her bed, and Iruka took a seat in the only chair.

"Better. Shizune came in this morning to tell me I should be able to leave this afternoon or tomorrow morning," she answered.

"I'm glad to see Naruto didn't kill you or send you into a coma, and that you're feeling better," Iruka commented, giving her a kind smile.

"Me too. I'm still a little weak, and I doubt I'll be able to walk pass in a few days, and then I should be back to normal within a week or two."

"Well while you're here, you're welcome to stay with me," Kakashi offered, "I live alone, and I'm sure your brother would love to know that you're staying with me."

"Actually, I'm pretty sure he'd have a heart-attack or a stroke if he knew his little sister was staying a pervert like you," Mika laughed.

"Ha-ha, so did you two used to know each other?" Iruka asked laughing as well.

"No, but my brother Hitari knew Kakashi-san very well. They were good friends," Mika explained.

"I'm surprised he'd think I was a pervert," Kakashi commented lightly.

"I'm not. He used to come home and tell me to make sure to stay away from perverted old me like that Hatake guy and then he'd go into the wonderful evening he'd had with his pal Kakashi at the bar."

"He's one to talk. You should have heard some of the pick up lines that boy had for the waitresses!" Kakashi laughed, "Your brother was even more of a perverted old man then I was! Yes I'll admit he wasn't old and neither am I, but he was far more perverted then I am!"

Iruka ignored the comments and regarded Mika with another kind smile.

"So what time did Shizune say she was going to be back to let you know if you could leave?" he questioned.

"She said she'd be back around eleven-thirty."

"Great, we'll wait here with you tills he gets back, and if you can leave this afternoon, you can come with us," Iruka said.

"I'd love that, thank you."

"You're welcome," both Kakashi and Iruka said at the same time.

They sat and talked until Shizune came in with a knock on the door. She walked into the room looking grim and greeted Kakashi and Iruka half-heartedly.

"I have good news and bad news for you Mika," she started once she was standing next to the bed, "which do you wanna hear first?"

"The good news," Mika replied.

"Good news is you can leave any time you like now, you're free to leave the hospital," Shizune presented.

"What's the bad news," Kakashi inquired.

"We received a message hawk from Suna and they think we're holding you hostage at the moment. They've told us to return you within the week or they'll officially declare war and attack."

Mika sat in shock for a second before looking up at the three ninja in the room fearfully.

"I don't want to go back!" she cried out, "please don't make me go back! I'm so afraid of what will happen to me if I do! Please, please, if there's anything you could do, please let me stay here, don't make me leave!"

Iruka got off the chair and knelt beside Mika, placing a soothing hand on her shoulder. Kakashi did the same on her other side and Shizune sat on the edge of the bed, her hands wrapped tightly around her clip board.

"We can't make any promises, Mika, but we'll do what we can. First though I think we should have you send a hawk back to Suna letting them know that you're in no danger and you're here of your own free will. After that we'll have to arrange a place for you to stay," Shizune planned calmly.

Mika nodded her head and sighed as she wiped away tears from her face. She took and deep breath and turned to Kakashi.

"As much as I'm sure you'd love company, I don't think my brother would approve much of my living with you. If you don't mind I'll find somewhere else to stay."

Kakashi laughed and nodded her head, "I understand no problem."

They left the hospital, Mika leaning on Iruka because she still couldn't walk very well, and, to her surprise, Kakashi holding Iruka's hand. She gave the jounin a questioning look, but he ignored it and kept walking. She made a mental note to ask Naruto or one of his teammates if they knew what that was about.  
After Mika had sent a hawk to Suna, Shizune took her to see Lady Tsunade, Kakashi and Iruka had to wait outside her office.

"Lady Tsunade, Mika is here to see you," announced Shizune from the doorway.

"Send her in," came a tired call.

Shizune turned and smiled at Mika then opened the door wider for her to enter. Mika crossed the room slowly and stood in front of the Hokage's desk. Tsunade didn't look up...she almost looked as if she didn't even know Mika was there, so Mika cleared her throat nervously.

"Oh, hello again Mika, how are you feeling?" Tsunade asked looking up at her with a smile.

"Better. I have trouble walking but Shizune says that will pass."

"That's good to hear, now I assume Shizune has told you of the message we received from Suna?"

Mika nodded her head with a grim look on her face.

"There's no need to look so grim, dear. Our shinobi will do what they can to prevent a war with Suna, and I will do all that I can to do as you ask and try to arrange for you to stay here in Konoha."

"Thank you Hokage-sama, you're so kind. I really don't deserve this but thank you anyway."

"Of course you deserve this Mika. Don't let people tell you other wise. Now, while you're here you'll need a place to stay. I know you don't know many people yet but would you like to stay with anyone specifically?"

"Um, well Kakashi offered to let me stay with him, but I told him I didn't think Hitari would approve of that."

"Ha-ha, I can understand that. I don't think you'd be able to stay with him anyway because he's gone on missions most often."

"Well I was thinking of maybe staying with Naruto... I mean if he doesn't mind. He's been so kind to me since we met, and I think we'd get along living together, even if it is just till I have to go back to Suna."

Tsunade placed her elbows on her desk then folded her hand together and smiled at Mika.

"I'm sure he'd love that. I'll send for him and what he thinks. Shizune!"

Shizune poked her head into the room, "yes Lady Tsunade?"

"Could you send someone to retrieve Na..."

"Grandma Tsunade!" came a loud obnoxious voice from the hallway.

"Never mind," Tsunade groaned, "hello Naruto!" she called back.

"Grandma! What are you... oh hi Mika, I didn't know you were here. I heard you were out of the hospital, but I assumed you had already headed back home," Naruto said as he walked into the office and saw Mika standing in front of Tsunade's desk.

"Hello Naruto," she replied quietly.

"Naruto I'm glad you're here, I wanted to talk to you about Mika living arrangements. She has to stay here for at least a week or two so we can be sure that she's ok, and so she needs a place to stay. She's asked if you would mind if she stayed with you," Tsunade explained.

Naruto tilted his head to the side for a second and stared at Tsunade with a confused look on his face. "Heh?"

"Are you really that dense? Mika needs a place to stay and she asked if she could stay with you, how do you not understand that?" Tsunade demanded her patience for Naruto very short.

"I get it, I just wanna know why me?" he shot back.

"Well because you've been so nice to me since we first met Naruto, and I think we'd be able to get along well if I lived with you. Also you're really the only person I know, besides Kakashi-san. And, as I've said to both him and Hokage-sama, I don't think my brother would really approve of my living with him. Hitari thought highly of Kakashi-san but he did warn me to be careful of his perverseness, and I think that'd be almost impossible if I was living with him," Mika spoke up.

"Oh...um...well ok sure."

"Great. Mika, I'll have Shizune pick up some clothes for you and have her drop them off later today. Naruto, don't do anything stupid and get her injured again, got it?" Tsunade instructed.

"Yeah yeah whatever, grandma. You know that was an accident!"

"That's beside the point Naruto," growled Tsunade.

"Hokage-sama, I agree with Naruto. It was just an accident. Please don't be hard on him, it really was my fault for not paying attention but it was still an accident."

Tsunade started at Mika for a second then smiled, "I think it is a good idea that you're staying with him."

"Why do you say that?" Mika and Naruto asked at the same time.

"I have my reasons, now get out of my office before I lose all my patience for you Naruto," she demanded.

"Hai," Mika said smiling at the Hokage.

Naruto grumbled and gave a quick bow before turning to Mika with a smile, "alright, well follow me, I'll show you to my place."

They left the office and Tsunade let out a sigh. Shizune came in and handed her superior a cup of Saki.

"Shizune, have you noticed it?" Tsunade said taking the cup and downing it instantly.

"Noticed what Lady Tsunade?"

"The look in Mika's eyes when she sees Naruto."

"Ah, that, yes I have. It's that same look Kakashi has in his eyes when he sees Iruka, or when Sakura or Ino see Sasuke."

"Exactly...I think she'll do good for that boy. Now I hope he doesn't do something to scare her away from him."

"Let's hope," Shizune agreed.

"You know I had the same look in my eyes at one point long ago. I'm sure you already know who the look was for," she glanced at Shizune, who nodded, before adding, "I was so much in love with him...I still am, I just wish he wasn't such an idiot sometimes."

Shizune smiled at her Hokage as the older women turned to watch out the window. Two people could bee seen walking down the street, one in grubby clothes that looked very worn from a mission, and the other in bright orange that stood out and could be seen even from way up at the top of the Hokage Mountain.

"Yeah, I can tell...she'll be good for him," Tsunade sighed.

So there's chapter four for you all. Sorry for taking so long to update, I was having serious writers block. I'm not one hundred percent sure, but I think there might be two or three more chapters, depending on the length. I was shocked this was six pages in Microsoft Word, I think it's the longest one I have so far.

Anyway I hope you enjoy, and please don't forget to review ^_^


	6. A Place To Stay

Author Note: So even though I asked for more reviews before I'd post the next chapter, I'm going to post what I have typed of this chapter as a Christmas present for my readers. So Merry Christmas, and please remember to review after you're done reading.

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**A Place To Stay**

Mika followed closely behind Naruto, as he showed the way to his place.

"So, you're going to be here a while eh?" Naruto asked glancing over his shoulder at Mika.

"Until I'm well again, yes" she answered sadly.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asked stopping and turning to look at her.

"Well, I really don't want to go back," she explained averting her eyes so she was staring down at her shoes instead.

"Why not? Don't you want to get back to your home, your friends, your family?" he asked walking again.

"My family is all dead; I'm an orphan, so I really don't have a home. I live in a ninja orphanage and I don't have any friends. My teammates hate me and so do the rest of the orphans I live with. They all think I'm too different, too kind and soft-hearted. They think I'll end up getting the killed if we're on a mission and so everyone avoids me as much as possible. I tend to go on solo missions because my teammates always find a way to get out of the mission if they can, and when we are on missions together, they tend to give me the easiest task and then ignore me."

"That's horrible!" exclaimed Naruto.

"I'm used to it," she shrugged indifferently.

"That's still horrible. I know how you feel though," he added as he climbed a set of stairs in an apartment complex.

"You do?" Mika asked taking one step and stopping. She couldn't make her legs go up, because it hurt too much.

"Mmm hmm," Naruto mumbled as he continued to climb.

He stopped when he realized she had, and went back to her.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I can't do this alone. My legs and body are to sore."

"No problem, I can help you up!" he shouted, before picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder.

"Naruto!" she squeaked in surprise.

He laughed as he walked up the stairs, down a hallway, and stopped in front of a door.

"You can put me down now, Naruto," she ground out once he'd stopped.

"Nope, not yet," he laughed again as he opened the door, walked in and kicked his sandals off.

He closed the door with his foot, before walking down the hall into another room. Mika assumed it was the living room when she saw a TV and a shelf full of brightly coloured books, which looked like the one she'd seen Kakashi reading. Her assumption was confirmed when Naruto dumped her onto a couch. She glared up at him and he just grinned and laughed.

"Welcome to my place Mika!" he cheered holding out his arms as if showing off the room.

"Come on I'll take you for a tour."

He reached out his hand and took hers, pulling her up from the couch.

"This is the kitchen, my second favourite room."

Leading her back into the hallway he pointed to a closed door.

"That's the bathroom and the closet is right here," he pointed to a door next to his bathroom.

"And this is my bedroom, it's my favourite room," he said as he walked through the door at the end of the hall, just before the living room. He let go of her hand and hugged the wall before adding, "I love my bedroom."

She covered her mouth with a hand and started to giggle, but stopped when she realized how much laughing hurt. Naruto turned and grinned at her.

"You have a very pretty giggle," he commented offhandedly.

"Uh, thanks," She said quietly, covering her blush with the hand currently on her face.

"So what do you wanna do today?" he asked moving back into the living room.

"I don't think I could handle much more walking, so do you think we could just stay here and watch a movie or something?" she replied following him.

"Sure!" he cheered, "sit down and I'll pick one out!"

Refraining from giggling at his almost insane cheerfulness, Mika sat down on the couch and waited. After Naruto had found a movie, he turned it on then went and sat down beside Mika. About twenty minutes into the movie, Mika started to fall asleep. Unconsciously she leaned over and fell asleep on Naruto's shoulder. He didn't even seem to notice because he was so absorbed in the movie.

When the movie was over, Naruto went to get up but stopped when he finally realized Mika had fallen asleep on him. He didn't want to disturb her, but he was hungry, so he tried wiggling out from underneath her. He gently laid her head on the couch cushion, and then walked into the kitchen to make himself some ramen.

When he was done eating, Naruto came back into the living room and saw Mika curled up into a ball, shivering. He smiled and walked over to his closet to grab a blanket, then laid it over her. She let out a sigh and relaxed, warming up almost instantly. He chuckled quietly and walked over to his bookshelf to grab a book. He thought he'd read while Mika slept, so after he grabbed the book he sat down in front of the couch and leaned backwards against it.

Mika woke up about and hour later more tired now them she had been before she fell asleep. She blinked her eyes before opening them fully. She was surprised, to say the least, when her eyes met a mess of bright blond hair.

"Naruto?" she mumbled, her voice a little scratchy from sleep.

He jumped slightly, startled by her voice, and then spun around to grin at her. She immediately blushed when she noticed how close his face was to hers, the tips of their noses were actually touching. As she blushed, she scooted backward away from Naruto's face.

He just kept grinning and laughed, "you must have been really tired," he teased, "you've been asleep for almost two and a half hours now."

"Really? I'm sorry Naruto; you must have been really bored."

"Don't worry about it; I just made myself something to eat then grabbed a book to read. I wasn't bored."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, no problem."

He turned the rest of his body to face the couch, and then laid his cheek on the cushion.

"So, feel better now that you've had a nap?"

"Not really. Actually I'm _more_ tired now."

"You can go lay down on my bed if you like. It's more comfortable then the couch," he offered, shifting his head so it was resting on his chin.

"no, no, that's fine. I should be fine till this evening," she declined.

"It's alright, I don't mind. Besides I have to quickly run to the store to get some food. There's definitely not enough here for two people, there's barely enough for just me," he laughed.

"Why is that?"

"Because I'm rarely home, and most often when I am, I eat at Ichiraku."

"That's the ramen place you were at, right?"

"Yep, with Iruka-sensei," he nodded his head.

"Oh yes. He seemed like a very nice person," she remembered/

"The best. Iruka-sensei's been like a father to me since forever."

"Um, Naruto?" Mika asked carefully.

"Yeah?"

"Where are your parents? How come you live alone?"

"I have no clue where my mom is...I'm not sure if she's even alive. And my dad...died sealing the nine-tailed fox demon, Kyuubi, inside me," he replied quietly.

Mika was shocked. She hadn't actually expected him to answer her. She had just expected him to brush it off or ignore her.

"So you're the one with the great tailed beast sealed inside their body?"

"Yup, that's me. Jinchuriki Naruto!" he laughed pointing to his chest with his thumb.

"You're a goofball, Naruto," Mika giggled forgetting how much it hurt to do so.

She grimaced and bent over, her face contorted in pain.

"Are you ok?" Naruto asked worried.

"Fine, just a bad idea to giggle, it hurts."

"And people say laughter heals the soul. Apparently they forgot to include the side-effects, flashes of pain."

"Please don't make me laugh," she choked out, holding in more painful giggles.

"Did I mention that your giggle is beautiful? It's so sweet and heart warming."

Mika blushed and covered her face with her hands, not quite sure what to say. Naruto chuckled and stood up.

"Go lay down on my bed, I'll be back in a few."

"Really, I'm fine. If you don't mind, I'd like to come with you. I think I'm just over tired and need to move around."

"Ok, I don't mid the company."

He reached down and took hold of her hand. He helped her to her feet, then the two of them went to the front door and Naruto helped Mika put her shoes on. It was slow moving but they finally got to the market. They had barely been there five minutes when they ran into Kakashi and Iruka, who were -to Mika's surprise- once again holding hands.

"Hey Kakashi, hi Iruka-sensei!" Naruto cheered as he waved at them enthusiastically.

"Yo," was Kakashi's only reply.

"Good evening Naruto, Mika-chan. What are you two doing at the market this late in the day? Naruto, don't you usually do you shopping in the morning?" Iruka inquired.

"Mah, well, we were watching a movie and Mika fell asleep. I didn't want to disturb her so I let her have a nap. I was going to make us some dinner after she woke up but realized I don't really have all that much food in my apartment. I usually _do _shop in the morning and would have waited if I was just alone but, since Mika's staying with me now, I can't really do that. It'd just be rude not to feed her, now wouldn't it?"

"My, my. You certainly have grown up haven't you?" Kakashi laughed.

"Oh shut up sensei, it's none of your business anyway!" Naruto snapped.

Kakashi and Iruka just laughed at him before starting to walk away.

"See you later Naruto!" Iruka called.

"I expect to see you both on the training field tomorrow, Naruto! Don't be late!" Kakashi yelled over his shoulder.

"You should maybe listen to your own words sensei! It'd be nice if you started up on time!" Naruto retorted with a glare at the back of his teachers head.

"What!? And miss a morning walk on the path of life!?" they heard him say before the two men rounded the corner.

Naruto rolled his eyes before leading Mika off again.

"Naruto?" she asked quietly, shyly.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"Are those two together?"

"Who?"

"Kakashi-san and Iruka-san," she elaborated.

"Ewe! No way! I'd never let that pervert near Iruka-sensei!"

"They seem awfully close though. I mean, they were holding hands."

"What! That's impossible, you must have been imagining it," he argued.

"Don't think I'd imagine that twice. They were holding hands last time I saw them too."

"But there's no way Iruka-sensei's gay!"

He stood there in shock trying not to believe it. (A.N. who ever thought that'd be in the same sentence as Naruto lol)

"Hey Dobe, why do you look like you've just been told you're allergic to ramen or something?" came Sasuke's voice from ahead of them.

Naruto looked up and it took his mind a few seconds to process it was Sasuke.

"Sasuke! Please tell me Iruka-sensei isn't gay!" he shouted once his mind had caught up with him.

"What the hell?" Sasuke asked totally confused, though not showing it.

"Mika thinks that Kakashi and Iruka-sensei are dating. But that's impossible because Iruka-sensei isn't gay, _right_?" Naruto sounded worried now.

"You mean to tell me you didn't know about those two?"

"Then it is _true_! Oh god no! Iruka-sensei!" Naruto cried, falling to his knees.

Mika knelt down and patted Naruto's back to comfort him. Suddenly he stood and grinned.

"I bet that means he's seen Kakashi's face! I sooooo gotta know!" he shouted.

He ran off leaving Mika and Sasuke behind. She glanced at him shyly and wasn't sure what to say.

"He can be such and idiot sometimes," Sasuke scoffed.

Mika made to get up but noticed, once again, her muscles wouldn't obey. She was stuck kneeling and it was starting to hurt.

"Uh...Sasuke was it?" she asked timidly.

"Yeah?" he answered curiously.

"Could you do me a favour?"

"Depends..."

"Could you help me to my feet? I can't get up."

He nodded his head, walked over to her, and helped her up. However, once on her feet, Mika instantly felt dizzy and ended up passing out.


	7. Confusion

Authors Note: Well here's the 7th chapter. I hope you all enjoy. Please click that little button at the bottom and leave a review; I really do appreciate feedback on my fics. It helps a lot to know if my readers are enjoying what they read.

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**Confusion**

Mika woke up feeling groggy and confused. Her eyes took in her surroundings and she realized that she didn't recognize anything.

"Where am I?" she muttered to herself, "and what happened?"

The last thing she could remember was Naruto running off and asking Sasuke to help her stand up.

"You passed out after I helped you to your feet. Naruto was nowhere to be found, so I brought you to my place so you could lie down till you woke."

"Thank Kamii it's just you. For a moment I thought I was back in Suna," Mika sighed.

"Why do you sound so relieved you're not in Suna?" he asked, though sounded like he didn't care.

"It's a long story..."

"Then keep it to yourself, cause I don't care and I don't wanna hear it," he interrupted.

"Why are you always so sour and arrogant?" Mika asked a little offended.

"Same thing, it's a long story. And I'm not about to tell you."

Mika huffed and glared at him, though he just glared right back.

"Prick," she muttered.

"Your point?"

Her glare intensified, yet _still_ Sasuke didn't care. Mika gave up with a huff and crossed her arms. She narrowed her eyes for a moment, and then looked away.

"If you're going to be such and asshole, why'd you help me? Why didn't you just leave me?" she spat.

"Because Naruto care about you, and I care about him."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"I'm not explaining myself."

She growled and clenched her hands in frustration.

"You're so infuriating! If you're going to be like that, then I'll just leave and wait for Naruto back at his place," she snapped at him.

Mika threw her legs over the side of the bed and made to stand up.

_"At least he was kind enough to lay me on a bed and not a couch...or the floor,"_ she thought to herself.

A hand landed on her shoulder, preventing her from standing -and for a split second she was grateful when she felt her legs throb and knew they would have given out on her the second she stood- but then she remembered it was Sasuke preventing her and her anger flared.

"Let...go...of...my...shoulder," she growled out through clenched teeth.

"Naruto will come directly to my place to look for you and you're in no condition to be moving around anyway. Just lay back down and get some rest before he gets here," Sasuke instructed.

"Let go," Mika repeated, completely ignoring Sasuke's instructions.

"I'm not moving my hand until you agree."

"Get your fucking hand off me!" she yelled.

"Mika!?!" came Naruto's relieved yet worried voice.

"Naruto! I'm in here! Get this bastard away from me!" she yelled, spotting his blond hair at the end of the hallway.

Naruto bolted down the hall to the room and stopped once he was between Mika and Sasuke. He pushed the brunette away and glared,

"What'd you do to her?!" he snarled.

"Nothing. She passed out after _you_ ran off, so _I_ brought her here till you came back,"

"And what about right now? Why was she screaming at you to get your hands off her?" he demanded.

"She wasn't screaming," Sasuke corrected him before continuing, "she was trying to stand up, but it's obvious she's too weak to do that at the moment. I was preventing her from hurting herself. I only had my hand on her shoulder, and if she was at full strength, or even a quarter stronger then she is right now, she _could _have stood up. I wasn't applying any pressure and yet she acted lie I was using all my strength to keep her down."

"So, I'm weak am I?" she snapped.

"I didn't mean it like that," Sasuke retorted.

"You're such an asshole. Just back off and let me leave."

"Fine, you want to injure yourself further, and then be my guest. I don't care, it's not like it'll hurt me any."

Naruto spun and caught Mika as she attempted to stand and instead fell forward into his arms. She blushed and tried to pull away but Naruto held tight.

"Mika, don't strain yourself. You don't want to get hurt again do you?" Naruto murmured.

She just sighed and shook her head.

"Right, so let's get you home ok? Sasuke, can you help her onto my back?"

Sasuke stepped forward and lifted her on; ignoring her protests and murmurs that she could do it herself.

"Thanks Sasuke," Naruto said before leaving.

Authors Note: Well that's chapter seven. I should have chapter eight up in the next few days if I'm not to busy. This get a little more interesting in the next chapter so be on the look out for it. Oh and there's a new character introduced as well.

What would you do if you wanted to have a shower but you needed assistance, and the only person to help you is of the opposite sex? I'll let you all think about that while you wait for the next chapter...seeing as Mika ends up in that situation at some point.

I'd like to thank the readers who left me reviews and I encourage you all to please leave me one. Even if it's just "I enjoyed reading this," or something like that, it's nice to have some sort of feedback.


	8. Concern

Authors Note: I decided that I was going to be lazy lol and just call Gamakichi "Kichi" through out the whole chapter cause I didn't want keep typing his whole name.  
The italicization of Naruto's name is just so you know that it's clone Naruto and not the real one.

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**Concern**

When they got back to Naruto's apartment, he insisted she lay down on his bed and get some rest, not that she put up much of a fuss. He helped her in, and then left her to sleep.

"I'll be back in an hour or so. I forgot to grab food while we were out. I'm going to leave Gamakichi here, if you need anything just ask him and he'll help. He'll come get me and I'll be here in seconds, if anything goes wrong. Just sleep, you'll need all your strength for tomorrow," he said before summoning a frog on the end of the bed.

"Hey boss, what can I do for you?" the frog asked.

"Kichi, I want you to look after Mika for me for a little while. You know the drill," Naruto explained.

"Got it boss." The frog nodded in understanding.

Naruto gave Mika one last smile then left. She eyed the frog nervously, not sure if it was just going to stay there. It turned and looked back at her.

"You must be Mika," it stated, "name's Gamakichi, nice to meet yah," he introduced.

"Uh...you too?" she replied nervously.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you; I'm here to protect you."

"Right... well, I'm going to get some sleep."

"Okie dokie, holler if you need anything," he said as he bounced off the bed and out of the room.

After Kichi left, Mika got comfortable under the blankets and fell asleep almost immediately. She was still asleep when Naruto got back and actually didn't wake till the next morning. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and slowly sat up to stretch. Glancing sideways at the clock beside the bed, Mika saw that it was about 10:00 and was surprised she'd slept so long.

"Shit, that must mean that Naruto slept on his couch last night," she realized.

"Don't worry about it; boss does that all the time."

She jumped in surprise, and then saw Kichi sitting in the doorway.

"Where _is_ Naruto?" she asked the frog.

"Out training. He tried to wake you but it didn't work so he just let you sleep. Said it was better if you slept then strain yourself with training," Kichi explained.

"Oh." She went quiet for a moment before asking, "did he say when he'd be back?"

"Around lunch time. He said you're welcome to anything. Food, shower, TV, anything you like."

"I'm not sure if I'll be able to even get out of bed," she confessed, a little embarrassed.

"He thought that might happen, so he also left a clone behind to help out," Kichi stated.

A _Naruto_ clone walked though the door and over to the side of the bed.

"Mornin' Mika, feelin' better today?" the clone asked.

"You talk?" she asked astonished.

"Yep, he's a shadow clone," Kichi explained.

"Wow, that's a hard jutsu to learn. I still have troubles with just a _normal_ clone jutsu."

"Mah, I'm a quick learner," _Naruto_ laughed, "that and I sat of used our forbidden scroll to learn it," he admitted.

He explained to Mika what had happened, after she had given him a questioning look. Afterwards he helped her out of bed and they went to the kitchen so she could eat. _Naruto_ made her a plate of bacon and eggs, which she gratefully ate.

"That was delicious, thank you," she said after she was finished eating.

"You're welcome, I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"Where did you learn to cook like that?" she asked.

"Iruka-sensei taught me."

"He's such a wonderful person."

"He is. I'm so glad he's taken care of me that way he had. If he hadn't, I'd probably be living on the streets."

"Why's that?"

"Not very many people actually like me, because of the Kyuubi. If Iruka-sensei hadn't taken me in, I don't know what might have happened to me. For all I know, I could have even been dead by now, if not for him."

"I don't know what to say," she admitted.

"Ah, it's ok, don't worry about it."

They sat in silence, both thinking to themselves, until cleared her throat nervously. _Naruto_ glanced at her and saw that her cheeks were very red and he was concerned for a moment, then he realized it was just a blush.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Um... I'd like you help with something, but it's kind of embarrassing," she told him.

"Awe, don't worry about it. I promise, whatever it is, I won't laugh and I'll keep it to myself," he encouraged.

"Well, the thing is, I'd kind of like to take a shower," she started.

"What's so embarrassing about that?" he asked confused.

"I don't think I can stay standing, on my own, long enough to _have_ a shower."

"...oh..." _Naruto_ blushed and looked away shyly.

"I might need you help getting undressed as well," she added.

There was an awkward silence that fell between the two. They just sat there, avoiding each others gaze, until finally _Naruto_ turned to her fully and sighed.

"Well I guess a bath is out of the question, seeing as I don't have one. But it won't be that bad. I mean, I'm a clone, so it's not like the real Naruto will know," he said.

"...I guess you're right," Mika offered slowly.

Again they fell silent, not sure what to do next. _Naruto_ solved their dilemma for them once again by standing up and offering a hand to her.

"Better do this before the real me gets home," he stated as he pulled her to her feet and they headed to the bathroom.

She sat on the toilet lid while _Naruto_ helped her undress. It wasn't until she was only in her bra and underwear that he paused and she blushed, looking away. Tentatively, Mika reached behind her back to unclasp her bra. _Naruto_ stopped her by laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Hold on a sec."

He stood and crossed the floor, then returned with a towel, which he handed to her.

"Cover yourself with this first. Once we're in the shower and you have you back to me, you can take it off. So you have a little privacy, you know?" he explained his actions.

She blushed again, but in appreciation.

"Thank you_ Naruto_," she whispered.

He helped her stand again and closed his eyes while still holding onto her, as she rid herself of her last articles of clothing and wrapped the towel around herself. Once that was done, _Naruto_ stripped down to his boxers and a t-shirt, and then turned on the water of the shower. Mika nervously watched him afraid to ask something, though it would help her feel more comfortable.

"What is it?" he asked when he noticed her discomfort.

"Um...well, this may not make much sense but...could you strip down completely too? I feel awkward being the only one totally unclothed," she said shyly.

_Naruto_ blinked as she blushed further and he took a moment to process her words.

"Are you sure?" he eventually asked.

She closed her eyes and nodded, before quickly adding, "if you don't mind that it."

"If it'll help _you_ to relax and be more comfortable, then I'll do it," he stated.

He quickly slipped his shirt over his head and let his boxers fall off his hips and to the floor.

"Come on, let's get you clean now, ok?" he said as he led her to the shower.

They got in and Mika, with her back to him, removed her towel.

"Mika?" _Naruto_ asked while he held her up.

"Yes?" she answered, busy with wetting and washing her hair.

"How did you get this scar on your back?"

"Which one? There's plenty."

"This one," he said running a finger down a long jagged scar that traveled pretty much from the base of her neck to the very bottom of her lower back, directly down her spine.

She shuddered at the touch and closed her eyes tightly as she repressed and moan. That particular scar was extremely sensitive, linked almost directly with the nerves in her body that responded to pleasure. Her breath came in short gasps as she tired to regain her composure, and will away the arousal that had risen in her at such a simple innocent touch.

"Is something wrong? Are you alright; I didn't hurt you did I?" _Naruto_ questioned voice full of concern.

"Fine, just don't do that again," she managed to say.

"I'm sorry," he apologized quickly moving his hand back to her waist.

It was the easiest and best place to hold her, to keep her on her feet.

"It's alright. It's just that that scar is really sensitive," she explained, once she'd calmed down and caught her breath.

After that, the scar question was forgotten and Mika finished washing. They got out and quickly dried off and got dressed. _Naruto_ had grabbed a change of clothes for Mika while she sat on the toilet lid again and dried off. She slipped on the overly-large shirt and boxers and then was helped back to bed.

"Tell Naruto I'm very grateful for his help, when he gets back please," she said as she snuggled under the blankets, welcoming more rest for her tired and sore body.

"Promise," the clone replied quickly enough before the unconsciousness claimed the recovering kunoichi.

Authors Note: I apologize, the next chapter is going to be really short, but I'll try to make up for that by making chapter 10 _really really_ long.

Please don't forget to review, I really appreciate them.


	9. Surprising and Embarrassing Discoveries

Authors Note: I'm sorry this is an extremely short chapter, but I promise the next one will be longer. I would have made it longer but I decided that leaving it like this was perfect for what I was trying to get across. If I made it any longer it wouldn't really be as dramatic.

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**Surprising and Embarrassing Discoveries**

Naruto was baffled and almost mortified with himself when he returned later that day and dispelled his clone. Its memories and actions rushing to him, after it disappeared, so quickly and unexpectedly that he fell on his ass on the living room floor. Had he actually done that?! He couldn't believe that Mika had even asked. It may have seemed innocent at the time, but it definitely wasn't now. The two of them had _showered together_, _naked, _and he'd had his hands on her body…her _naked_ body.

"Fuck!" was all he could think to say in this situation.

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Authors Note: I have no idea when chapter 10 will be out, but I'll try not to leave this wimpy short chapter all alone for long. I'm about 1/3 done number 10, and I _do _have all holiday to work on it so it shouldn't be too long. Please leave a review. I'm actually sort of running out of ideas, so maybe you could help me out a little. I have a general idea of where this is going, but I need help getting there lol.


	10. Awkward Silences

Authors Note: Ok well this is chapter...what now? Don't remember lol XD Anyway I'm gonna need some comments and maybe some suggestions, because I'm stuck. I don't really know what to write for the next chapter. Anything helps and is very much appreciated! Thank you!

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**Awkward Silences**

Mika slept for most of the day and Naruto busied himself with cleaning his house. By the time she woke up, Naruto was cooking dinner. She meticulously made her way to the kitchen, using the wall for support. As she walked through the doorway, Naruto spotted her and rushed to her side to help.

"Are you feeling any better?" he asked as she sat at the table.

"A little, yes. Thank you."

"It's no problem, you needed the help. There's no point in straining yourself and slowing you healing."

"No, thank you for leaving the clone. I wouldn't have been able to do anything if you hadn't left it."

Naruto blushed and coughed before turning back to the cooking.

"Don't mention it. I figured you'd be a little troubled in moving around by yourself," he said making sure to keep his back turned to her. He didn't want her to know that he knew what had happened.

"So whatcha' makin'?" she asked.

"Pasta."

"It smells delicious."

"Thank you. It's Iruka-sensei's recipe."

He finished cooking, set the table, and then served them both. They ate quietly and afterwards Mika watched Naruto wash the dishes. Mika had the strange feeling that Naruto was hiding something from her, and she couldn't help but think she knew exactly what it was.

"How'd you find out?" she voiced nervously.

"Hmm? 'Bout what?" he replied distracted.

"You know what happened today don't you? How'd you find out?" she repeated.

Naruto froze, dropping the plate he _had_ been holding, into the dishwater.

"…"

"I don't really care that you know; I'm just curious."

"Um, well… when I dispelled the jutsu, my clones' memory became my own," he explained.

Silence fell again.

"So you're not mad that I found out?" he asked.

"No why would I be mad? It's not like you _planned_ for that to happen…did you?"

"No! Of course not!" he defended.

"See, then there's nothing to worry about."

She smiled at him and he awkwardly smiled back.

"Could we watch another movie? I think I over did it with moving around, it's probably best if I stay sitting or laying down."

"I told you you should have gone to lay down. _But no_ you wanted to come shopping with me. If you had listened to me you wouldn't have collapsed," Naruto teased.

"That wouldn't have been a problem if you hadn't have run off. Sasuke ended up having to take care of me," she teased back.

"I wouldn't have run off if you hadn't have brought up Kakashi and Iruka-sensei!" he countered.

"You wouldn't have freaked out about it if you had paid attention to your surroundings once and a while!" she retorted.

"You're one to talk; if _you_ had been paying attention to _your _surroundings, you wouldn't have gotten hit by my jutsu!" he snapped.

"Maybe if you practiced more that wouldn't have happened in the first place!" she snarled.

"You should listen to your own words! If you practiced more you might have actually completed your mission!" he shouted.

"And killed you!" she yelled back.

Both of them froze. What had just happened? Naruto looked at Mika shocked and confused, and Mika looked at Naruto apologetic and sad.

"What?" he said quietly.

"I…I uh…never mind just drop it," she stammered.

"I don't think so! You don't drop a bomb like that, and then expect me to ignore it!"

"Just leave it alone, Naruto."

"I won't."

"Naruto…"

"Nope."

"Naruto."

"No."

"Nar…"

"I'm not going to drop it, so just suck it up and explain."

"Fine you really wanna know?! My mission was to find information on the Hokage and the jinchuriki! If at any time contact was made with either, we were to eliminate them! My specific job was the jinchuriki! When I found out that was you, I could have followed orders and completed my mission, but because you went and got me injured and my teammates were found out the mission was considered a failure! If I hadn't gotten hurt because of _you_, you would be dead by now!" she bellowed.

They fell into an awkward silence again, before Mika continued her explanation.

"You know what, though? I'm glad I got hurt. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have gotten to know you so well. I wouldn't have been able to make such a wonderful friend."

Naruto was speechless. He just sat there staring at Mika with his mouth wide open.

"Look, let's just forget about this and go watch a movie, ok?" Mika decided after letting out a deep breath.

"Uh…yeah…sure."

He stood up, picked up Mika and walked into the living room. He set her on the couch and then went to grab a movie for them to watch. After putting it in he sat beside her and turned it on. They watched the movie without talking to each other, but it was obvious there was still tension between them.

When the movie was over Naruto got up and crossed to the T.V. He turned around to ask if Mika wanted to watch another one but saw that she was sleeping. He smiled softly and this time decided to bring her to the bed so she would be comfortable.

He hoped when she woke up things wouldn't be so quiet and awkward.

Authors Note: I hoped you enjoyed! Please review^.^

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	11. Message From Home

Author's Note: I hope this works alright for the next chapter. I don't really know where I'm going with this anymore cause I really have no ideas. I'm thinking of maybe bringing in Mika's brother again, like have him not actually be dead or something like that, but I dunno, I don't wanna make the story to complicated. Please send your ideas and let me know, any help is greatly appreciated.

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**Message from Home**

A few days after Mika had begun staying with Naruto, they were called in to see Tsunade. When they showed up, the first thing Tsunade did was hand Mika a scroll.

"It's from Suna," she informed.

Mika opened the scroll and read it. Her face turned horrified and she shot Tsunade a worried look.

"What does this mean?" she whispered.

"It means that we're going to have to send you back or Konoha will be at war with Suna. I'm sorry Mika, but there's nothing I can do. We have to send you home. I know you don't want to, but you have to leave. My priority is to this village and, as much as I'd love to let you stay, it's to dangerous."

"I understand. I didn't think they'd let me stay. I'm surprised it lasted this long. Thank you for your kindness Tsunade-sama."

"Wait, I thought we'd cleared everything up! I thought Mika was allowed to stay here!?" Naruto shouted.

"According to that scroll, Suna thinks we forced Mika to reply. They're just using any excuse they can to attack us, but we can't take chances," Tsunade explained.

"But what about Mika? What'll happen to her? She's obviously still to weak to go on her own!"

"I'm going to send a team with her to make sure she makes it home safely, but after that there's nothing I can do."

"But she doesn't want to go home. Don't they get that!?"

"Naruto, there's nothing that can be done. Just let it go."

"But..."

"Let. It. Go," she snapped.

Naruto shut up, but pouted. He didn't want to see Mika leave.

"It's OK Naruto, whatever it takes to keep Konoha safe I'll do it. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine," Mika reassured.

"But I don't want you to leave," Naruto continued to pout.

"I promise I'll write to you when I get back."

"Promise?"

"Everyday if you want."

Naruto smiled and nodded his head. It was funny, he's so much older then her and yet she felt like _she_ was the elder of the two.

"Mika I think it would be best if you left as soon as possible. Gather was you have and come back here in ten minutes. Your team should be here by then," Tsunade ordered.

Mika nodded her head, as did Naruto.

"Grandma?" he asked quietly.

"What is it brat?" she growled.

"Can I go too? I really wanna make sure she gets home alright."

"I don't know Naruto..." Tsunade hesitated.

"Please! I promise I won't get in the way or mess!" he begged.

"Alright, but you're in charge of her. Don't let her get hurt again."

"I won't, she won't, I promise!" he cheered.

He grabbed Mika's hand and ran out, not even waiting for a dismissal from Tsunade. They ran back to his place and immediately started packing. Mika collapsed on the bed and groaned in pain.

"Naruto didn't Tsunade say _not_ to let me get hurt again?"

"Huh?" He looked up from his packing and glanced at Mika.

"I'm not fully recovered yet, you dolt! I can't run like that!"

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.

"You're going to have to carry me now. I think if I walk anymore I'm going to collapse and pass out again."

"Don't you worry; I'm going to take good care of you."

"Better then you have so far?" she teased.

"That was an accident! And I already apologized for it!" he defended.

"I was only joking, Naruto."

"Oh...right...heh oops," he chuckled embarrassed.

~~~~~~~~~~~This is a page break~~~~~~~~~~~

Once they were finished packing, Naruto carried Mika back to the Hokage's tower where a whole team of..._one_ ANBU was waiting.

"What the hell is this!?" Naruto demanded outraged, "I thought you were sending a _team_, not _one person_!"

"Naruto, shut up! This is our most skilled ANBU, The Hound. We don't need anyone else on the team. With you and Hound, Mika is more then protected. Now, I want you to leave immediately, the sooner you leave, the quicker Mika gets home and the safer Konoha will be," Tsunade snapped at the younger blond.

"But..." Naruto attempted to protest.

"No buts! Go, Naruto, before I decide to keep you here!"

Naruto grumbled and nodded his head. He left the room with Mika on his back.

"Hound!" Tsunade called before the ANBU could leave.

"Hai, Hokage-sama?" replied Hound.

"Take good care of them please," she requested.

"Hai, Hokage-sama."

The ANBU nodded, bowed, and left as well.

Author's Note: Wow that took me longer to get up then I thought it would. I was just really lazy and didn't feel like sitting at my computer to type it all up, but I did it! Finished typing at 1:15 am, while watching the movie _Pitch Dark_.  
Couldn't sleep and decided what better time to type then so freaking early in the morning lol. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I wasn't really sure where I was going with this one until I was about half way through. I came up with an idea and my good friend Milli helped me elaborate on it, so now I think I know what the write in the next few chapters. This is the most I've written before that was actually in chapters.  
I'm babbling on so I'll just shut up now lol.  
Please Review! I say this all the time but feedback really helps me with my plot. Heck if I get a good enough idea I might just turn that reviewer into a character, I've done that for Milli-chan!


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